Simple Homemade Ice Cream In a Bag Edible Science

AMAZING yummy science with homemade ice cream! Have you ever tried this edible science experiment? Whether you make it inside or outside, make sure you have a pair of warm gloves ready. This homemade science activity is chilly chemistry for kids. Enjoy easy science experiments and STEM activities all year round.

HOMEMADE ICE CREAM EDIBLE SCIENCE

This is one of our 25 MUST try summer science experiments when the weather is nice! Making homemade ice cream is actually quite easy and a good workout for the arms! This ice cream in a bag science experiment was a great family activity for a hot day.

EASY ICE CREAM SCIENCE EXPERIMENT

Make homemade ice cream for an easy ice cream science experiment the kids will LOVE to do with you. This does require adult supervision and assistance. A good pair of gloves are needed as this science activity does get very cold.

Edible science has become one of our favorite things to do together these days. Possibly because I have a kiddo going into third grade and growing like a weed. Whenever I mention anything about food, eating, edible science…

He’s all in. BIG TIME!

It’s summer, and we love ice cream. Instead of heading to the local dairy bar, grab a few simple ingredients and head outdoors. Kids can learn just how their ice cream is made…with chemistry!

MAKE HOMEMADE ICE CREAM STEPS

In smaller bag mix together half and half, vanilla and sugar, close tightly.

Place smaller bag inside gallon size bag.

Shake for about 5 minutes.

Use gloves as the bag gets very cold.

ICE CREAM CHEMISTRY AND EDIBLE SCIENCE

Why does the bag get so cold? What’s the chemistry behind ice cream because it’s pretty sweet!

The magic is in the salt and ice mixture! In order to make your homemade ice cream, your ingredients need to get really cold and well frozen.

When you mix the salt and ice you are making a solution. Adding salt to the ice lowers the temperature at which water freezes. You will actually notice your ice melting as your ice cream ingredients start to freeze.

Shaking the bag allows the warmer cream mixture to move around to allow for better freezing. Plus it also creates a little air that makes the ice cream a bit fluffier.

Is ice cream a liquid or a solid? Homemade ice cream changes states of matter, also more chemistry! It starts out as a liquid but changes to a solid in it’s frozen form, but it can go back to a liquid when it melts. This is a good example of reversible change as it’s not permanent.

You will definitely notice that the bag becomes much to cold to handle without gloves, so please make sure you have a good pair of gloves to shake with.

TURN IT INTO A REAL ICE CREAM SCIENCE EXPERIMENT

If you would like to take this your homemade ice cream science beyond an activity and turn it into a science experiment, try these suggestions:

What happens if you don’t use salt? Set up two bags for making ice cream but leave the salt out of one bag.

What happens if you use a different type of salt? Set up two or more bags for making ice cream and choose different types of salt to test!

What happens if you swap out milk for the heavy cream? Or what happens if you try another type of milk like almond milk. Set up two or more bags for making ice cream and choose different types of milk to test!

I love this idea! I would love to use it in a class setting, but am wondering how much each batch makes? Is this recipe for one person or multiple? I mean, we can all use more ice cream, but minimalistically speaking, lol

Hi! We always need more ice cream but I guess it would come down to how much you would expect to serve each kiddo. I think 2-3 kids could enjoy tasting it and surely it would be helpful to have multiple hands to shake each bag since it can get tiring. Make sure to really seal bags well though so that the salt doesn’t make it’s way into the ice cream bag. I have thought about a plastic container with the ingredients and that be put inside the bag with ice and salt…